outstanding spring 10 - the clunbury parish website · pdf file2 • outstanding •...

OutstandingSpring/Summer 2010

Coastal goldCelebrating 50 outstanding years of the North Devon AONB

THE MAGAZINE FOR AREAS OF OUTSTANDING NATURAL BEAUTY

Chris Packham’s Suffolk The naturalist paints a picture with ‘a palette of splendour’

Heritage valuesFighting floods by restoring peatscapes

Wild about bloggingEnjoy the virtual soap opera ofBowland’s wildlife

Seaside studentsHands-on education www.aonb.org.uk

Outstanding is published by The National Association for Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Fosse Way, Northleach, Gloucestershire GL54 3JHTel: 01451 862007Editor: Jill Smith Email: [email protected]: www.aonb.org.uk

Designed and produced by Fellows Media Ltd (FML), The Gallery, Manor Farm,Southam, Cheltenham GL52 3PB Tel: 01242 259241 Email: [email protected] Web: www.fellowsmedia.comSpring/Summer 2010, Issue 18

View fromTHE CHAIR

Cover image: Broad Strand Beach,Combe, North Devon Coast AONB.

NAAONB 12th Annual Conference 12-15 July 2010 Hosted by Kent Downs AONB,the conference will featureinspiring visits to SE AONBs and French PNRs, high-profilespeakers and thought-provoking discussions.

For details seewww.aonb.org.uk

Welcome to the Spring/Summer 2010 edition of

Outstanding.

The United Nations General Assembly has declared

2010 the International Year of Biodiversity (IYB) to help raise

awareness of the importance of biodiversity all over the world.

I recently attended a Conference on endangered species and for

me the most disturbing issue is that with millions of forms of life,

we are still worryingly ignorant about how interdependent they

are and how the extinction of any of them, known or unknown,

might affect life as we know it.

We hear much about some of them – the ‘charismatic species’

but it may well be the removal from the food chain, intention-

ally or not, of uncharismatic ones – the hidden, microscopic,

uninteresting, uncuddly or downright nasty – that will have the greatest impact. Research

has only scratched the surface.

A global target was agreed in 2002 to significantly reduce the rate of loss of biodiversity

by 2010. The IYB has been planned to align with the next Convention on Biological Diver-

sity Conference in Nagoya, Japan in October which will assess progress towards this target.

Saving biodiversity requires effort from everyone. Through activities around the world,

the global community are working together to ensure a sustainable future for us all. AONBs

are ideally placed to help raise awareness of the importance of this campaign and we are

using the year to work as a family to help achieve its goals to:

• Enhance public awareness of the underlying threats to biodiversity

• Raise awareness of what has already been achieved locally and nationally to safeguard it

• Encourage individuals, organisations and governments to take urgent steps needed to

halt the loss of biodiversity

• Promote innovative solutions to accomplish this and plan for future years.

This edition of Outstanding is one of the ways the family of AONBs is supporting the IYB

campaign and the following pages highlight the good work that our AONB Partnerships

are undertaking on a landscape scale to conserve and enhance the biodiversity of the UK’s

Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

We are delighted that the three main political parties have been able to contribute to

our publication clarifying their plans for AONBs. We look forward to working with them.

2 • Outstanding • Spring/Summer 2010

Welcome

www.biodiversityislife.net

9th International Junior Ranger Camp24-31 July 2010Hosted by the Mendip HillsAONB, the camp will provide arange of experiences includingsustainable living, outdooractivities, cultural visits andevening social events.

For details seewww.juniorrangers.eu

The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the NAAONB or FML. Items for publication should be sent to the Editor at the NAAONB.

Ashley Thomas, NAAONB Chairman

Spring/Summer 2010 • Outstanding • 3

Sustainable tourism

An interactive, searchable, web-basedmap of all the promoted walking and

cycling routes in the Chilterns AONB isattracting thousands of hits each month.

Input a postcode, town or village and a detailedOrdnance Survey map, centred on the search location,is brought up, on which promoted walks, bike rides andOpen Access sites are highlighted. You can further filter your search by specifying the type of walk or rideyou’d like. Some routes are plotted on the map base.

The site encourages locals and visitors alike to makemore of the recreational opportunities on their doorstep.

The inclusion of Open Accesssites in particular is openingpeople’s eyes to the wealth ofdownland and commonlandareas within the AONB.Visit www.chilternsaonb.org

and click on ‘walks & rides’.

your doorWalks from Our Coast Our Sea

Packed with downloadable learn-ing activities and information

sheets, www.ourcoastoursea.org.ukoffers an inspirational guide to the

natural and historic heritage of the Northumberland Coast AONB.

The site’s practical tools include a calendar ofevents, details of storytelling walks and castletrails, advice on how to get involved in conservation, and a fascinating insight into thearea’s coastal icons such as puffins and Grace Darling, the lighthouse keeper’s daughter whoheroically took part in a dangerous sea rescue in1838. A dedicated section for teachers and lecturers who are planning coastal trips is alsoavailable, including information about venues,accommodation, activity ideas and contact detailsfor local experts.

The wilder side ofDiscover the wildlife hotspots in the

Forest of Bowland AONB and surrounding countryside by loggingonto www.bowlandwildlife.org.uk

Sixteen local businesses, that are themselveswildlife havens, are taking part in the venture, providing up-to-date details and images of wildlifesightings via a blog on the site – a virtual wildlifesoap opera. An online map ofthe area shows exactly wheredifferent species, including rarebirds, can be found.

A regular contributor tothe wildlife blog is ColinNewsham, owner of Forrest Hills, a ruralevents venue. Colinsaid: “We’ve had people booking greenconferences as a direct result of seeing thenew site. People are really keen to find outabout the wildlife that lives here and nowit’s just a click away.”

Bowland

Left: An Oystercatcher. Above: Bowland’s website.

Above: Aisling Lannin and Mel Nicholls. Below: Seahouses event.

Below: Seahouses First School classroom.

Left: Walkers on Lodge Hill.

Tom M

arshall

Both AONBs areworking togetherwith local partnersto create a landscape link...


Biodiversity

specific plants to feed on, such as violets andprimroses, which can’t grow under a densewoodland canopy.

Seventeen butterfly species are stronglylinked to woodlands, including White Admiral,Purple Emperor, Duke of Burgundy and fivespecies of fritillary. Thirteen of these are indecline nationally and have already been lostfrom many of our woodlands, including thebeautiful Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary.

The Denge Woods (Kent Downs AONB) andRother Woods (High Weald AONB) project areashave been given a dedicated officer, basedwithin the local AONB office for the three yearsof the project. Their aim is to locally promotesustainable and active woodland management,

emperors and admirals

At just nine miles apart theWye Valley and Malvern

Hills AONBs are close neighbours and both have

been designated as Biodiversity Enhancement Areas by the West MidlandsBiodiversity Partnership.

However, much of the land between thetwo designations has become more intensively managed in recent years. Thearea has seen a loss of field trees andhedgerows, a proliferation of polytunnels,and general landscape and habitat degradation. These changes pose a significant problem for wildlife that maywant or need to ‘bridge the gap’. BothAONBs are working together with local partners to create a landscape link that willenable species to move more freely betweenthese two nationally important areas.

Andrew Nixon, Development Officerwith the Wye Valley AONB, said: “We see thebenefits that this project can bring to thebiodiversity of both areas, making ourwildlife populations more robust andenabling them to cope with the pressures ofclimate change.”

The project will deliver habitat connec-tivity and nature conservation by providingadvice and training opportunities tolandowners, and by administering grants. To create a sustainable legacy, there will beassistance for green enterprise and business,support for community initiatives, and the creation of community volunteeringopportunities.

Bridgingthe gap

Above: The project area linking the Wye Valleyand Malvern Hills.

Landscapes fit for

Launching the 2010 InternationalYear of Biodiversity, Ahmed

Djoghlaf, Executive Secretary ofthe United Nations Convention

on Biological Diversity, highlighted the importance of the marine environment. Hestressed the problem caused by the currentlack of marine protected areas: “This is

serious, as the future of humanity willdepend on what happens in the seas –if we fail to take action we will facesevere consequences.”

Although land-based, coastal AONBscannot afford to ignore his words. Theformal AONB boundary lies at low water,but the influence of the marine environ-ment beyond is crucial to the specialqualities of coastal AONBs. Many over-lap with marine Special Areas of Conser-vation in their intertidal zone, and closeworking relationships help to strengthenmanagement of the ecological linksbetween land and sea.

But there are other links, particularlyvisual (‘seascape’) and cultural. For example, the local fishing industry, which stillcontributes so much to the character ofcoastal AONBs, depends on sustainable use ofa healthy marine environment. Many coastalAONBs are involved in groups such as theCoastal Partnerships Working Group, workingto strengthen the recognition and coordinated management of the linksbetween coastal protected landscapes andthe sea.

Coastal AONBs provide a key opportunityfor the public to find out about and begin toappreciate the incredible underwater richeswe have, often just off shore.

deep

Above: Pearl-bordered Fritillary. Right: Duke of Burgundy.

Woodlands have a long-heldassociation with some of our

most beautiful, and now rarest, butterflies. Butterfly Conservation’s

South East Woodlands Project (SEWP) is focusingefforts to conserve these species at two key areaswithin the Kent Downs and High Weald AONBs.

Decline in active woodland management hasled to a loss of open woodland areas that

provide nectar sourcesand basking opportunities

for butterflies and many otherinvertebrates. The caterpillars ofmany woodland butterflies need

Seventeen butterfly speciesare strongly linked to

woodlands, including WhiteAdmiral, Purple Emperor,

Duke of Burgundy...

Norfolk Coast AONB Partner, the NorfolkWildlife Trust (NWT), is doing key work in theAONB in this regard, and has linked up witha diver, Rob Spray, whose stunning picturesillustrate this article. His organisation,Seasearch, aims to establish a continuing survey of the UK’s marine wildlife, to identifyimportant habitats and vulnerable species,monitor change and better understand theeffects of human and natural influences.

The Norfolk Coast AONB’s coastline supports significant breeding colonies ofboth grey and common seals. The presence ofthese top predators in significant numbersindicates just how rich the Norfolk inshorewaters are.

Much of the seabed off the coast is flatand sandy but the chalk reefs between Weybourne, Sheringham and West Runtonprovide a rich, alternative habitat for marinelife, from coralline algae and red seaweedsto elegant dahlia anemones and lobsters.

The numerous sunken wrecks off the Norfolk coast become marine biodiversityhotspots over time, supporting shoals of fish,beautiful sea slugs and various crustacea.

Animals such as mussels and sabellariaworms have bound the sediments of theseabed together, forming a stable habitat. Ahuge mussel bed (at least two kilometreslong) lies just off the coast at Sea Palling. Thesand is completely covered in edible musselsand sea squirts, which form a stable platformfor all kinds of animals to move in. The mus-sels also attract huge numbers of predators,such as starfish and sunstars, and scavengers,such as whelks and hermit crabs.

Visit www.seasearcheast.org.uk for moreinformation on conservation.

Into the


Left: White Admiral.

creating suitable habitats and improving corridors for woodland butterflies and moths.The Project Officers have directly helpedlandowners to apply for over £200,000 in Wood-land Improvement Grants.

All im

ages cou

rtesy of Joh

n Bo

gle

Top: Facelina auriculata. Above left: Sunstar. Above right: Janolus cristatus crystal sea slug.

All im

ages courtesy of Roy Spray

Climate change

Join us, a group of local people, convinced thatif we work together we will make a

difference… to our energy use.” That plea,addressed to the people of Marlborough in the

North Wessex Downs AONB resulted in the formation of Marlborough Climate Pledge (MCP), launched in 2006 by former Environment Minister Michael Meacher.

MCP’s main aim is to reduce the residents’ individual andcollective impact on climate change by promoting a changein their behaviour and culture, as well as a change in the

institutions that underpin that culture at the local,

One of the major problems posed by climate change is increased flooding and

in the North Pennines one of the solutions isright under your feet.

The moorlands of the North Pennines are a vast repository of peat. Peatland vegetation absorbs rainfalland slows its flow into lower-lying ground, locking in billions of tons of carbon. Half a century ago, drainagechannels (or ‘grips’) were dug into the peat to make landmore productive. This resulted in the peat drying out anderoding, the release of carbon dioxide, and a greater flooding threat to towns and villages downstream.

The North Pennines AONB Partnership’s PeatscapesProject is working to block up the channels so that thepeatlands can retain their moisture. For the first time, peatdepth measurement work has been undertaken in theGeltsdale area.

The Partnership’s Peatscapes Project Manager, PaulLeadbitter, said: “The readings will provide a valuable basis for further research.The United Nations estimates that tenpercent of global carbon dioxideemissions come from drying peat.We are working with other groupsand organisations all over the worldto secure a sustainable future forour peatlands.”

For peat’s sake

A climate for changenational and international level. MCP’s pledge booklet covers four major areas: energy, food, transport and wasteand the group calculates the amount of carbon dioxide thepledgers are saving. The first pledge feedback process of 100households has already resulted in savings of 125 tonnes ofcarbon dioxide.

MCP organises a varied programme of public events,including meetings with invited speakers, children’s ‘scrap-store’ workshops and information and pledge stalls, and hasalso launched a community allotment project.

Find the MCP pledge booklet at www.climatepledge.org.uk

Above: Marlborough Climate Pledge.


Biodiversity

Fortifying the pearl mussel

Thought to be part of a family that has beenaround for 200 million years and capable of

living well over 100 years, the freshwater pearlmussel is a truly remarkable creature. A Holarctic

species, it is threatened throughout its range and is classified by the International Union for Conservation ofNature (IUCN) as endangered.

During late summer, females release millions of larvae ina synchronised event. To survive, the larvae have to be inhaledby juvenile brown trout or Atlantic salmon. Some will attachto the gills of the fish and will grow in the oxygen-rich environment. After about nine months and when about0.4mm long, the glochidia (larvae) detach and descend to theriverbed. Most will perish as they fall onto unsuitable

substrate, but some will establish in stable sandy, gravellyriverbeds, and in a healthy river may live for many years.

The River Clun in the Shropshire Hills AONB is now one ofa small number of English rivers hosting the freshwater pearlmussel, formerly widespread in UK rivers.

Unfortunately, in common with other rivers in the UK, theClun population has suffered a steady decline. Causes fordecline include siltation of riverbeds and eutrophication ofwaters. Recently a coalition has been formed, headed by the Environment Agency, Natural England, Catchment SensitiveFarming Initiative (CSFI) and the Shropshire Hills AONB Partnership, which is working with local farmers and organisations to address the issue.

Funded by Environmental Stewardship schemes, farmersthroughout the catchment are establishing riparian bufferstrips to help intercept run-off, improving stockyards andfarm tracks to minimise dirty water, and installing alternativestock watering facilities.

Demanding the highest water quality, the future of pearlmussels is inextricably linked to the survival of other species.By improving pearl mussel habitat, a host of other aquaticspecies will benefit.

...part of a family that has been around for200 million years and capable of living

well over 100 years, the freshwater pearlmussel is a truly remarkable creature

Top: Monitoring freshwater pearl mussels using an Aquascope.Above: Freshwater pearl mussel. Left: River Clun at Hurst Bridge.

Above: Volunteers test peat depth at Geltsdale RSPB Nature Reserve.Right: Blocking up ‘grips’ or drainage ditches to restore the peatlands.

Spring/Summer 2010 • Outstanding • 7Im

age courtesy of John Searle

“


Politics


11th February 2010

House of Commons

London SW1A 0AA

Dear Minister,

Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty

The UK’s Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty cover

a total area of nearly eight thousand square miles.

They are some of the most beautiful and iconic landscapes in the country. N

ot only are they living, work-

ing places that mean a lot to the people that live there, they also rem

ain close to the hearts of the many

millions that visit.

Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty are as varied a

s the people that cherish them. Whether it’s the

rugged splendour of the Causeway Coast and Glens, the ro

lling fields and stone villages of the Cotswolds,

the wild moorland of the North Pennines, or the wonderful, sandy beaches o

f Gower, these distinctively

different areas hold tight to a common thread – they are natio

nal assets governed by local people for the

benefit of the nation.

The work of the family of AONBs is driven by over seven hundred locally

elected members, each with

a passion to ensure these areas are passed on from one generation to anothe

r with their natural beauty

and inherent special qualities undamaged. Working in partnership, oft

en with dedicated volunteers,

small AONB teams consistently achieve much, often with very little.

Our AONBs are more than just pretty places though. Increasingly th

eir value for delivering a wide

suite of goods and services is being recognised. They

have a major role to play in the management of our

national water resource, in managing carbon, in protecting our wildlife at a scale that is re

levant in a

changing climate, and in helping to keep the nation healthy and

happy. All of this is additional to the

well understood contribution they make to successfully integra

ting environmental outcomes with those of

society and the economy.

If your party comes into power following the general election, what will you do to ensure that ou

r Areas

of Outstanding Natural Beauty remain in good heart and equ

ipped to rise to the challenges of the future?

Yours sincerely

Ashley Thomas

Chairman

RT HON DAVID CAMERON MPHOUSE OF COMMONSLONDON SW1A 0AALeader of the Opposition

Mr Howard DaviesChief Executive OfficeThe National Association for AONBFosse Way, NorthleachGlos. GL54 3JH

Tuesday, March 9th 2010

Dear Howard

Thank you for your letter regarding Areas of Outstanding Natural Beautyand asking how a future Conservative Government might equip them to riseto the challenges of the future. Conservatives believe that Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs)are vitally important, not only for conserving some of the UK’s most beautiful environmental assets, but also for unlocking the value in ournational landscape. At a time when UK biodiversity is in decline, we needAONBs to help us protect and enhance our habitat and safeguard wildlife.We recognise that they are uniquely placed to provide both effective management of important areas of habitat and also proper delivery ofinitiatives and targeted local funding.Looking to the future, we believe that AONB partnerships should betrusted to have a greater say in the development of local priorities. Afuture Conservative Government will support and value the role playedby AONB Boards as groups of enthusiastic people who can deliverimportant local environmental and socio-economic priorities in a cost-effective way. One of the most valuable assets of AONBs is the close,coordinated relationship they can achieve with local authorities, community groups, farmers and land managers without central government direction or costly top-down bureaucracy. We believe that this coordination at local level is vital in addressingthe huge challenges facing our natural environment, including climate change adaptation and biodiversitydecline. Under any future Conservative Government, AONBs will have a critical roleto play to ensure that our most importantlandscapes can continue to thrive and beenjoyed by future generations.

Most of my constituency, including myhome, is in one (Cotswolds), and I ama big fan.

Yours David

David Cameron

NICK CLEGG

LEADER OF THE LIBERAL DEMOCRATS

4 COWLEY STREET, LONDON SW1P 3NB

Mr Ashley Thomas

Chairman

NAAONB

Fosse Way

Northleach

Gloucestershire

GL54 3JH

24 February 2010

Dear Mr Thomas

Thank you for your letter regarding the Liberal Democrats’ approach

to AONBs.

Britain is blessed with many areas of outstanding natural beauty.

The Liberal Democrats are committed to ensuring that these areas

are protected and enhanced – so they may remain beautiful for us all

to enjoy. Crucially, AONBs also help promote biodiversity and a more

sustainable Britain. We want to broaden the number of sites which

are protected in law – so we’d bring in a special, separate designa-

tion to protect allotments, playing fields and other green spaces of

particular value to the health and wellbeing of local people.

We also need to tackle litter and pollution, which can have a

major effect on AONBs – environmental crime isn’t being tackled,

the penalties don’t reflect the real damage done and it’s not clea

r

who is ultimately responsible. We’d make the buck stop with the

Environment Agency – requiring it to co-ordinate enforcement and

giving it real power to make sure councils and other agencies play

their part. Of course, most of Britain’s ‘natural

environment’ is under

commercial management for agriculture or forestry – so our

policies need to reflect this. We would bring in landscape-

scale

policies, which would be agreed between local authorities –

protecting biodiversity, restoring and protecting natu

ral features of

local environments, reducing flood risk and encouraging local food

production. We also have to make sure our planning system

accounts for the capacity of our environment – so we’d require

councils to protect local biodiversity and promote the

establishment of wildlife corridors.

Finally, we mustn’t separate AONBs, or the natural environment

more broadly, from the wider green agenda –

the two can and must go hand in hand.

Climate change is causing enormous damage

to natural habitats and wildlife. Our plans to

invest in green energy, insulate homes and

reduce energy use are vital – the sheer scale

of the challenge for Britain and the whole

world needs to be faced up to, for the

natural environment and also for the well-

being of people around the world.

Thank you once again for writing.

Nick Clegg

Leader of the Liberal Democrats

“Conservatives believe that Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs)

are vitally important, not only for conserving some of the UK’s most beautiful environmental assets, but also for unlocking the value in our

national landscape...”David Cameron, Leader of the Conservative Party

“We want to broaden thenumber of sites which areprotected in law...” Nick Clegg, Leader of the Liberal Democrats

“AONBs arenational assetsgoverned by

local people forthe benefit ofthe nation”

Ashley Thomas, Chairman, National Association for AONBs

Over the next four pages, we hear from the three main political parties about their plans for the future, including their vision for AONBs.

Andrew

Parsons

International Year of Biodiversity

Spring/Summer 2010 • Outstanding • 1110 • Outstanding • Spring/Summer 2010

As a child I took the natural world forgranted. I had the great privilege togrow up on the Gower peninsula in south Wales,

a rich mix of heath, marsh, dunes and woodland, designatedthe first ever Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in 1956.

My brothers and I spent nearly all of our time in thewoodland behind our house, building dens, seeing who couldclimb the highest tree – doing what boys do. As a teenager Iroamed the Gower, from the salt marshes and mudflats in thenorth to the sandy beaches of the south. So biodiversity –although I would never have used that word – was a given.

And now I’m Minister for the Natural Environment,including, of course, biodiversity and ecosystem services.These are heavy responsibilities, as just lately on this planetwe’ve been losing species pretty fast: about 1,000 times fasterthan the ‘natural’ rate indicated by the fossil record. And thisis because of what humans have been doing: over-exploiting,degrading habitats and causing climate change.

So my relationship with the natural world has changed. Ino longer take it for granted. I strongly believe we have animperative to change our behaviour, and reverse thisalarming biodiversity decline. It’s an aestheticimperative, and a moral imperative; but it’salso about our own survival. Healthy,thriving and diverse ecosystems areessential to our health and well-being,our economy, and, ultimately, ourlives.

The challenge is to spread this understanding, and makebiodiversity part of mainstreamthinking and decision-making aroundthe world. That’s what the InternationalYear of Biodiversity’s all about.

So my department, Defra, is funding the

Natural History Museum to establish and run theInternational Year of Biodiversity UK Partnership, a group ofmore than 340 organisations [including the family of AONBS- Ed] who are coming together to build a biodiversitymovement in this country. This partnership is working topromote the cause with the public, big businesses and otherorganisations; and also encouraging individuals to makesmall behavioural changes to help support wildlife.

The UK government has a critical role, both at home andinternationally. In October 2010, the crucial conference of the

Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) takes place inNagoya, Japan. CBD was adopted at the Rio Earth

Summit in 1992. The nations involved – nearly200, including the UK – signed up to a globaltarget for a reduction in the rate ofbiodiversity loss by 2010. Although thereare success stories in specific localities, it’swidely agreed that this target has not beenmet. This will be discussed in Nagoya, andit’s hoped a new, ambitious but achievabletarget will be agreed.To help prepare for discussions at

Nagoya, last month UK and Brazil hosted apost-2010 target workshop. As co-chair of this

event I facilitated discussions between representatives fromover 50 countries. Amongst the many issues we covered wasthe economic value of biodiversity and how this might beincorporated into targets.

Realising the true economic value of biodiversity, and theruinous financial costs of continuing to destroy it, is vital,especially to developing countries whose rich biodiversity isendangered by industrial growth. Also this year, PavanSukhdev’s study, ‘The Economics of Eco-systems andBiodiversity (TEEB)’ will be published. This study shows howmarkets fail to adequately consider the value of ecosystemservices, and estimates that the benefits of protectingecosystems and biodiversity outweigh the costs by 100 to one.The TEEB report will be presented to the UN in Septemberand to the CBD meeting in October.

National Ecosystem AssessmentHere in the UK, 2010 is the year the National EcosystemAssessment (NEA) starts to report. The NEA is the first-everanalysis of how the UK’s natural environment supportssociety and our economy. Phase one of the work looks back athow ecosystems and the services they provide us with havechanged over the past 50 years. Phase two will look forward,with recommendations about how we might measure and

manage our ecosystems in the future. This work will furnishus with clear narratives and accessible, compelling argumentsabout the need to protect biodiversity.

I still live in south Wales, with my family. Our home looksover a former mining valley, a beautiful landscape, but vastlydifferent from a few hundred years ago, before its trees werestripped away by mining and heavy industry. The impact ofhuman activity on the natural world has been hugelydamaging. But our efforts to reverse this are already payingoff. Even 20-odd years ago, when I was first married, the riversin south Wales were heavily polluted. Now they are so muchcleaner that the otters have returned. And the red kites, nearlyextinct in the UK in the early 1900s, are now thriving. I seethem often, soaring over Fan Hir – one of my favourite sights.

I don’t take the natural world for granted any more, but Iknow we can make the changes needed to allow it to recoverand thrive. We need to all do our bit.

FURTHER INFORMATIONFor more ‘Views’ on the International Year of Biodiversity, visit www.biodiversityislife.net

...justlately on this

planet we’ve beenlosing species prettyfast: about 1,000 times

faster than the ‘natural’ rate indicated...

International Year of

Biodiversity Huw Irranca-Davies, Minister for the Natural Environment, shares his ‘View’ on the importanceof celebrating the diversity of life on Earth.

Defra Crown Cop

yright

Above: Red Kite.


Jewels in our landscape


It’s just a coincidence that the Interna-tional Year of Biodiversity should coin-cide with the 40th anniversary of the

Suffolk Coast and Heaths and Dedham ValeAONBs, but there could hardly be a moreappropriate conjunction. These lowlandlandscapes, designated in the early monthsof 1970, stand out as veritable oases of qual-ity and abundance in the eastern region.

The two AONBs, though almost joined attheir closest point, could hardly be moredifferent. The Suffolk Coast and Heaths’windswept beaches, patchwork heaths andmajestic estuaries are a startling foil to thequiet lanes and intimate river valley of Ded-ham Vale immortalised forever by that mostEnglish of all landscape painters, John Con-stable. But common threads bind theseAONBs together: their outstanding land-scapes, the richness of their biodiversity,and the commitment of the Partnershipsthat work to conserve them.

Both still retain the wonderful featuresfor which they were originally protected –

indeed many arenow even better.There is no betterexample of thisthan the story ofthe marsh harrier.In 1971, one pairbred in the

Ruby red letter daySuffolk Coast and Heaths AONB – the onlypair in the whole of the UK. Now, thanks toconcerted management that has reinvigo-rated the AONB’s freshwater marshlands,these graceful birds are once more a featureof the landscape, floating low in the skyover their reed land home.

The story is the same in the DedhamVale where, by working closely with farmers, landowners and statutory agencies,species that are scarce in the wider country-side – like the enigmatic and playful otter –have returned in greater numbers.

To celebrate their 40th anniversaries,both AONBs plan to serve up somethingspecial. Suffolk Coast and Heaths hasteamed up with local brewers, Adnams, toproduce a set of 24 new walks, starting frompopular pubs. In the Dedham Vale, there isa new AONB guide and an art exhibition tocelebrate the work of another artist inspiredby the area, Sir Alfred Munnings. BothAONBs will be running events through thesummer to celebrate these great landscapesand the wildlife living in them.

Find out more information by visiting www.suffolkcoastandheaths.org andwww.dedhamvalestourvalley.org

in our landscapeJewels

In 2006 a comprehensive communityprofile of the area’s wildlife, landscape andother distinctive features was undertaken.

Two years later, the interactive ExploreBraunton project was launched – a multi-media ‘guided walk’ experience with videoclips and sound. Other initiatives haveincluded discovery days, library naturecourses, and poetry and photographic competitions inspired by the stunning locallandscapes.

The futureThe AONB Partnership’s objectives for thenext five years include continued commu-nity research, local landscape managementtraining, and support for local farmers, pro-ducers and North Devon’s BiosphereReserve. In addition, specific emphasis willbe placed on environmental stewardship,sustainable tourism, carbon reduction andproviding specialist advice for wildlife sites.

A major tourism attraction, the value ofwater sports goods and services alone on theNorth Devon Coast were valued at £80mil-lion in 2009. This brings pressures for newdevelopments, severe traffic congestion andparking issues. Finding sustainable solutionsthat enhance the landscape for people tocome and enjoy, while supporting the localeconomy, is a major challenge for us all.

For more information about the host ofanniversary events that are planned, visitwww.northdevon-aonb.org.uk and alsowww.northdevoncoast.org.uk

2010 is a very special year for the NorthDevon Coast AONB as it celebrates its50th anniversary with a packed

programme of events. North Devon Coast AONB’s special

landscapes are renowned for their ruggedcliffs, fantastic beaches, and pretty villages,and are made up of several distinct regions,each with their own habitats and geology.Some receive extra protection, such as theSites of Special Scientific Interest. This areais also designated as a Heritage Coast and issituated within the only UNESCO BiosphereReserve in England.

For 50 years many organisations haveworked to enhance this spectacular stretchof coast, which covers some 66 square milesfrom the boundary of Exmoor National Parkat Combe Martin to Marsland Mouth on theCornish border.

Successes Highlights include the first designation ofBraunton Burrows as a Biosphere Reserve in1976 and the opening of the North Devonsection of the South West Coast Path twoyears later – Britain’s longest national trail,which stretches 630 miles from Somerset to Dorset.

The North Devon Coast AONB Partner-ship was formed in 2004. Among its firsttasks was the creation of a managementplan and a sustainable development fund,which has since granted around £280,000towards some 70 local initiatives, includingbeach cleaning, farming, art, tourism andenvironmental events. The partnership hasalso secured matched funding from Europe,the National Lottery and other sources, rais-ing over £500,000 for the coastal commu-nity and economy over the pastfive years.

Going for gold

Left: Stour Valley landscape, DV AONB.Main: Minsmere levels, SCH AONB.Below: Easton Broad, SCH AONB.

Top: Putsborough Sands and Baggy Point.Below: Hartland.

Neville Stanikk

Neville Stanikk


News in brief

TAKING THE LEADNidderdale AONB and Yorkshire Dales NationalPark are launching a two-year project to buildsustainable communities. Funded by the York-shire Dales LEADER, a project coordinator willhelp to provide energy efficiency, communitycompost schemes and car sharing initiatives.

COAST TO COASTA joint management plan has been prepared forthe Northumberland Coast AONB and Berwick-shire & North Northumberland Coast EuropeanMarine Site. It focuses on delivering an ecosystem approach, informed conservation andclimate change adaptation.

TIME FOR CHANGESolar-powered, real-time information units havebeen installed at a number of bus stops in theChilterns AONB. The units provide bus arrivaltimes using satellite technology, which tracksthe buses. Customers can also look at timeta-bles, route maps and local information.

COMMUNI-TREESThe Malvern Hills AONB SDFhas been used to support

community-led biodiversity conservation in Colwall. The Colwall Orchard Group has commissioned wildlife surveys and planted newfruit trees.

FUNDING PASTURES NEW The success of the landscape-scale approachproject, Pastures New, in Dorset AONB has led tothe Partnership receiving funding to deliver one of the county’s 2008-2011 Local Area Agreement Targets.

WHERE EAGLES DAREThe Suffolk Coast and Heaths AONB Partnershiprecently supported plans by Natural England andRSPB to reintroduce white-tailed eagles to theSuffolk coast. The project promises to be one ofthe most high-profile reintroduction schemesever attempted in the UK.

CAUGHT ON CAMERAThe Causeway Coast and Glens Heritage Trusthas produced postcards, bookmarks, posters, aweb-based image library and books illustratingsome of the amazing images as seen through

the eyes of over 300 children in the Bineve-nagh and Causeway Coast AONBs.

GREEN-FINGERED TIPSA new event called ‘Your Garden in Chichester Harbour AONB’ will be held in May. It will com-plement a recently published booklet of top tipsfor those living in or near to an AONB, includingfootpath maintenance and gardening for wildlife.

BATTY INFORMATION Radio tracking of bats carried out last summerby the East Devon AONB Partnership hasrevealed exciting new information about howthe local colony of rare greater horseshoe batsuses the East Devon landscape.

EURO-CAMPForty youngsters from across Europe will gatherin the Mendip Hills AONB this July for the ninthinternational Junior Ranger Camp, which hasbiodiversity as its theme.

THE LAY OF THE LANDSouth West Protected Landscapes has produceda joint statement to build a more sustainablefuture for our landscapes. The commitmentstatement will help to strengthen the ProtectedLandscapes’ role as test beds for sustainability.

News in brief


Celebrity

In late summer the coastal heath aroundDunwich is the most colourful I’ve ever seen.I recall walking from the coastguard cottages

into a palette of splendour, complemented bythe thickest scents of dry coconut sewn into theheady mix by pillows of sun-drenched gorse.And then there’s Walberswick’s river mouthwhere time’s stood still, and its impenetrablereed beds where, on summer nights, water railsscreech maniacally and the windmill stands asilhouetted sentry to another time now gone.And Minsmere too, where the fleeting bitternthat flops from pool to pool distracts from theflurries of feathered anarchy on the busyscrapes, and Southwold beach where the big sunrises over miles of sand and tangos the shadowsof Sizewell’s stark and giant cube, and...

All these little beauties combine with a contiguous host of others to synergise into theSuffolk Coast and Heaths AONB, and there isabsolutely no contesting the title or what itmeans in a wider context. A significant part ofthe picturesque comes from the apparent‘wildness’ of the place, and from the ‘unspoilt’nature of much of it; and yet it is sympatheti-cally managed and essentially accessible tomany, the busy RSPB Minsmere car park regularly testifying to this. The wildlife value is

ChrisPackhamWhen it comes to celebratingthe 40th anniversary of theSuffolk Coast and Heaths AONB,there’s no better person to askthan celebrity birdwatcher andnaturalist Chris Packham. Chrisis a regular visitor to the AONB,and the landscape and specialwildlife have left a lastingimpression on him...

also extraordinary. Due to the great range ofwell-managed habitats, the AONB supports a significant biodiversity and among it some ofthe UK’s sexiest species: marsh harriers, night-jars, nightingales, bitterns and bearded tits toname just a few.

So it’s certainly a place to visit and to celebrate the positive impact that many formsof conservation have had on the landscape,but what of its future? Well, it’s sure to be adynamic one. With much of the area low-lying, sea level rise will play a major role andthe need to implement adaptation to copewith this is recognised and already afoot.

A new power station is also planned andthis will provoke concerns on many levels, notleast because the project threatens to bisect theAONB and thus reduce its biological sustain-ability. But I, for one, am optimistic that wenow live in an age where the voice of conser-vation is a force in planning such develop-ments, and that we can hope to mitigate for awin/win solution. Let’s try to work it throughwith effective mutual assistance. And thenthere’s the potential re-introduction of white-tailed eagles – we’ve proved it’s possible andwhile a few beaver might be better for widerbiodiversity, the addition of this avian super-

star to the local list would greatly reinforce theregion’s ecotouristic credentials.

But to truly secure a future for this fantasticpart of Britain, I believe we must prioritise theestablishment of a firm economic outlook forthe communities that live and work here. Theseare the folks who are best placed to enjoy it, bestplaced to conserve it and, most importantly,best placed to understand its true value, andthus most likely to choose to look after itthrough the forthcoming difficult times. So visitors… support them all, from the farmers tothe grocers, to the publicans to the tea shopladies, the B&B’ers to the bus drivers, and all therest. If we can help the humans survive thenthey’ll help us with the wildlife and nature, andonce you’ve been here you’ll know it’s worth it.

Ooh and then the fabulous shingle beachesat Aldeburgh and Orford…

Above: Dunwich Heath. Right: Chris Packham.

Biographical note:Chris Packham is one of the UK’s foremostTV wildlife presenters and journalists, bestknown for the BBC’s ‘Really Wild Show’and the hugely successful ‘Spring’ and‘Autumn Watch’.

A SOARING SUCCESSThe South West Farmland Birds Initiative (SWFBI) has really taken off since its launch. It focuses on six key bird species associated with arable farmland: lapwing, grey partridge,turtle dove, yellow wagtail, tree sparrow and corn bunting.

A taster of what will appear in the Autumn edition of Outstanding.


AONB map

THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR AONBSLaunched in 1998, the National Association for AONBs is a national, independentorganisation acting on behalf of Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Its membership is primarily local authorities that have AONBs and are concerned toimprove their management and funding arrangements. The Association is managed and administered by a Management Board. The Management Boardhas 12 members who meet four times a year. The Chairman is Ashley Thomas,Chairman, Wye Valley AONB. The Vice Chairman is Paul Jackson, AONBManager, Howardian Hills AONB. For further information see www.aonb.org.uk

Images courtesy of:John Bogle, Chilterns AONB, Dedham Vale AONB,Defra Crown Copyright, Malcolm Farrow, Forest ofBowland AONB, Kent Downs AONB, Malvern HillsAONB, Tom Marshall, Norfolk Coast AONB, DavidNorth, North Devon AONB, North Pennines AONB,Northumberland Coast AONB, North WessexDowns AONB, Shropshire Hills AONB, Rob Spray,Neville Stanikk, Suffolk Coasts and Heaths AONB,Wye Valley AONB.

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